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Laurel James – Perspectives – REAL Health

Two Steps to Clearing Space

By Laurel James

Do you feel like you have some breathing room every day to stop and take a moment to collect your thoughts? Do you have spaces in your home that are clear of clutter to unwind and just be?

Making time to stop and just be, is the first step. It gives you time to clear your mind, hear the essence of your inner self and focus on what you do want. Stop and take breathing time for you self each day. Breathing is the foundation of our dwelling place. Take several deep breaths and let your busy details of you lives go. Relax into your environment. Have no agenda for this moment of time. Sit, listen and feel the quiet. Even if thoughts are running through your mind, that’s okay. Just breathe. It will help to clean and clear you mind.

Think of clearing your mind as going to the “Peaceful Mind Gym” at a specific time for a certain number of times each week.

We go to Gyms to work out, get exercise and get healthier; why not take time for your mind to relax and clear the clutter? Take time to feel your breath. Sweep through all of your thoughts good and bad, and let the clutter go. Having the free space in your mind, clears the way for you to listen to your heart and to hear what you want and need in your environment. The key is finding the quiet space in your physical home. You may also need to set boundaries for your family members to not disturb you for a set amount of time. Ten to twenty minutes once a day is a good goal. Starting with ten minutes and working your way up is a realistic way to find your comfort level. Just like going to the gym, you don’t want to overdo it on the first day!

When we pay attention to the act of breathing, we permit ourselves access to our minds and hearts, allowing certainty and clarity to enter our experiences. To achieve a peaceful home consider the airplane safety instructions analogy; “Put your oxygen mask on first, before helping others.’ If we know who we are in our inner worlds, it will be clearer how we want our outer surroundings to support us.

The second part is to clearing one space in your home that feels cluttered. Just take one area that is really distracting you. An example of a clutter area in my own home is my drop off area; the place where I come in, throw my purse, mail, receipts, change, things to return and things I am going to fix one day. You know the place. We all have this area somewhere in our homes. I call this the “drop off and launching area.” It is usually somewhere near where you enter your home. Often it is a desk area, a kitchen spot, a place near the garage entrance or sometimes even in your bedroom. If you are feeling over whelmed in this area it is a great place to start to clear the clutter!

My drop off and launching area is in a tucked away corner on my kitchen counter. When the junk begins to stack up, I put the mail and receipts away in the correct files. Then I weed through the recyclable stuff and the things to give or throw away. The rest of the stuff to do “someday” slides right into my junk drawer. It gets it off the counter and I know the drawer can only hold so much before I have to clean it out! Keeping the kitchen counter clean is important because it is the main social hub of anyone’s home. Having clear space there supports your friends, family and yourself in your home.

Like the smell of fresh air in a forest, a clear environment and a few minutes of quiet time can change our mood in an instant. Let go of the clutter in your mind and clear away the things in your living space that no longer serves you. Also, the physical distractions in your home are not as disturbing when your mind is clear. Achieving breathing room in both your inner and outer places will brings you grounding and clarity for your Home.

Laurel James is a graduate of Ringling College of Art & Design and spent her first twenty career years as a nationally certified Interior Designer. She is the Author of Interiorology – How to Create a Living Space that Reflects the True You and has lectured on the ART of Living. She now is a Wellness Advocate leader for doTERRA essential oils and a KRI certified Kundalini Yoga Instructor. Laurel believes that “Just as a flower blooms in the right environment, so do we in the right living space.” She is passionate about essential oils and wellness to help us flourish in our homes.

Laurel will be presenting at the REAL Exclusive Magazine Business Builder Event, featuring All Faiths Food Bank, August 22, 2018 6-9pm on Healthy Happy Homes with essential oils. She is also a part of Four Pillars Wellness Center where a staff of professionals are there for you to discover a holistic approach to self-care. Contact FourPillarsFlorida.com for more information.

Laurel James Interiorology (941) 350.9240 interiorology8@gmail.com www.interiorology.org